How To Use Sea Surface Temperature Information for
Green Water Fishing
The location of game fish is affected by two things: Comfort, and the
availability of food. Water temperature can be the determining factor for
both.
Comfort: Finding Areas With The "Right" Temperatures
Each species of offshore game fish has a water temperature range they
prefer, and a wider range outside of which they will seldom be found. The
following is a list of these temperatures for species in the Georgia
coastal area.
SPECIES |
LOW |
HIGH |
OPTIMAL |
King Mackerel |
70 |
88 |
75-78 |
Spanish Mackerel |
68 |
88 |
72-82 |
Cobia |
68 |
80 |
70-78 |
Bottom Structure
Green water fishing off the Georgia coast means fishing in
significantly shallower water than blue water fishing. Bottom structure
like live bottom, ledges, rock piles or other man-made "reefs"
tend to hold bait schools in this shallower water, when water
temperatures over these areas are right.
The "right" water temperature for these areas is relative and
varies throughout the season. In general, a good temperature for bait and
gamefish over near shore bottom structure is a degree or two cooler than
the immediate coastal water (which can be a warm as the gulf stream's core
from May through September), but is a degree or two warmer than the
coldest water that usually sits between the coast and the edge of the gulf
stream. Watch out for pockets of colder water that move across bottom
structure. These can push bait and gamefish off of the structure.
In hotter months, sound entrances also tend to hold Spanish and cobia,
and in some cases kings. Spanish and cobia can often be found around
the buoys marking these entrances. Kings can be found around the
offshore ends of deeper entrances, such as the Savannah River and
Charleston Harbor entrances, which have been dredged to accommodate large
ships. These gamefish will only be present in these sound entrances
when schools of bait are present, so watch for diving birds and check your
depth finder for these schools. Troll around these schools of bait,
wherever they happen to be in the entrances.
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